Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Stardream Sign / Locking Our Doors and the Lunatic

As we moved along the coast our tour guide had to make a change in plans since something we were going to do was closed.  He asked if we wanted to go to a zoo instead.  Of course, we replied, we love animals.  So off we went into the boondocks outside this very small town and landed here, a place called "Stardream".  It was a small outfit, clearly designed for the benefit of small children, however it did have animals and we agreed to go to a zoo, so here we are.

Being a thing for kids, there were lots of pastel colors around the place, so snapped a few that turned out to be keepers.  The sign above was converted using the glowing edges filter, which appeals to a preference for bright colors against a black background:

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We are a month into watching after our brother-in-law's house while he and his wife are in Taiwan for an extended stay.  We've been following very specific instructions written for us before they left.  These instructions include checking the mail, driving the car once in a while, watering plants, switching lights that are turned on, and locking the doors when leaving.  There are multiple doors, some with a deadbolt plus combination to unlock the doorknobs, and a coded padlock for the gate to the back yard.  It's quite the chore, keeping up with all that, but we happily do things for our relatives.  Besides, we need the same sort of favor when we're in Taiwan or on another extended trip, now that we're retired.

As we're fiddling with all the locks and lights, I can't help but think of a much less anxious time when, in Orange, TX (pop 25,000 in the 60's and 70's) there wasn't nearly the angst we experience today about keeping things secure.  Unless you ran with the wrong crowd there simply wasn't a need to.  During the daytime I don't ever recall having to unlock a door to get into the house, even if no one was home at the time.  My dad did check the doors at night and when we went on vacation, but that was it.  And in Nacogdoches (also pop 25,000), in my little cottage out in the country, I never locked the door except at night before going to bed.  No worries about your TV, valuables, or even guns.  There's a certain freedom in not having to constantly think about anyone breaking in to harm you or steal your stuff.

Even in Mexico.  During the first part of the summer of 1980 I lived in El Ejido Charcos, which was a 14-kilometer drive from Allende, Coahuila, a town of 15,000 at the time.  This was a farming co-op way out in the sticks, and there was never any fear of anyone entering the house day or night.  In fact the windows were left open, and I hooked the screen door only to prevent the chickens, hogs or snakes from finding their way into the place while I was asleep.

EXCEPT DURING THE QUARTER MOON !  When I began my stay, there was a warning to keep the doors and windows closed and locked at the quarter moon.  This was because there was a crazy guy, a lunatico, in the area that would shout obscenities at you through the windows at night if they were found to be open.  I didn't take it too seriously until seeing my neighbors locking their windows, so followed suit.

Though there is a risk in allowing nostalgia to overtake reality about the "good ole days", I really do believe, based on experience then and now, that in those days and places life was simpler and the general population - at least where I lived - didn't have to worry so much about crime.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Reflection Shot

Walking a little further along, ran across this and thought it'd make a good reflection shot.  Due to the debris on the water's surface, it reminded me of this shot captured in New Orleans at the very beginning of my adventures in photography.  Unfortunately, the whole scene of that swamp shack was obliterated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Courtyard Behind Abandoned Building

This is an installation they had along the side of the building, which showed an inner courtyard.  I couldn't crawl through and explore, so what did I do?  I reached over and grabbed a 2-shot panorama of the innards:

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Tree Growing Out of Abandoned Structure

Focusing now on this tree that literally grew out of the side of the abandoned structure.  Looks as though it's possible there's some dirt in the floor where the roots are coming out, the same that could be providing a toehold for the smaller tree popping out of the window to the left.

Different perspective and profile of same below:

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Abandoned Structure #2

My, in my younger days what I would have given for the opportunity to sneak inside of this thing and explore for a day...

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Abandoned Structure #1 / Exploring Sea-Arama

Now THIS is something that'll get me going, and ticks several boxes:  high color contrast with the figures against a dull background; an old abandoned structure; vegetation proving that wherever life can exist it will; artfully placed Chinese writing; and a juxtaposition between the old and the new.  Because the others in the group weren't quite as excited as I was, they moved on while I hovered around this guy, "clack clack clack"ing away.

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I touched on the business of photographing abandoned structures in the first paragraph of this post from 2021.  The first time I had an opportunity to engage in this kind of photography, however, was during my work as Criminal Justice Planner for Harris and twelve other counties here in Southeast Texas, including Galveston County.

When going out in the field for a meeting, it was my habit to leave early enough to explore the environs for an hour or so to get a feel for the place.  This gained familiarity made it easier to break the ice as a good way to start a meeting, and earned credibility, as the stakeholders generally appreciated my efforts to know their communities better.  Before one such meeting on the island in Galveston County I was driving along on Seawall Boulevard when, on a lark, I decided to check out what was left of Sea-Arama.  As a family we went there on day trips from Orange at least once a year.  I knew it had closed, so was curious whether anything was still there.

Much to my surprise, a lot was still there.  And much to my greater surprise, I was able to go down the long drive and just walk into the place, as if it were still open for business!  What a bonanza this was for someone that has a weakness for nostalgia and loves to explore old abandoned places!

It was evident that the kids in the area - teens most likely - had discovered this bonanza as well, as there were tire marks where someone in a car had spun a few donuts right in the lobby area.  But amazingly everything was just the same as I'd remembered it, except old, rundown, and in many cases outright falling apart, and there was a moderate amount of graffiti in places.  The pools where the dolphins performed were still there, though empty and dry of course; in some, enough dirt accumulated on the bottom to grow a small tree or two.  From memory I was able to go directly to all the places where we'd seen shows more than three decades before:  the alligator and cobra show arena, the small lake where they'd performed the ski shows, the giant central aquarium surrounded by small ones along the edge, even the small cafeteria and snack kiosks.

I happened to have an Instamatic 110 in the car, so retrieved it and took probably a hundred pictures, which were printed and which I hope one day to scan and post a few for this blog.  As one who already liked exploring old and abandoned places, this was the first time I was able to indulge in photographing such, planting the seed for a hobby that, obviously, has lasted to this day.

As a postcript, later that day I was meeting with Sheriff Leonard, and told him I was amazed that just anyone could go onto that property and do whatever they wanted.  With those big empty pools and the precariousness of the structures that were literally falling down, I wondered if it was a huge liability for the county.  Don't know if my conversation with the Sheriff had anything to do with it, but as I drove by a few months later while there for another meeting, noticed that a tall chain-link fence had been installed around the property, the gate at the entrance of which was closed with a padlock.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Mobile in Shop

This also was in the same shop.  Thought about selecting out the foreground piece and making a separate layer so the background could be changed, as was done with the butterfly pic from yesterday, but it proved to be too tedious and time consuming for my patience at the moment.  Maybe another day...

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Butterfly in Shop

Also on our way in we passed a shop and ventured in, where this butterfly caught my eye.  Sometimes when I see something it's not as-is, but rather what it could be made into with Photoshop.  Such was the case here, and what you see above is what was already in mind as I snapped the shutter.  What you see below is the original:

Speaking of shutter, I've become increasingly aware, and nervous about, the "clack clack clack" sound that the Bigger Cahoona makes when out on a shoot.  It's really sort of obnoxious.  The reason for the three "clacks" is because I almost always bracket for exposure; maybe I should return to leaving it at -0.7 as a default and only bracket in certain situations.  Worked on the England shoot well enough.  Thinking about it...

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Wavy Park Installation

Though we traveled by car with our own private chauffeur, we sometimes ended up in places where buses stopped to engorge (mostly Taiwanese) tourists at a place of interest.  This was such a place, a large compound area that was used during and before the 1940's that was later turned into an attraction.  Thought this was an interesting installation on the way into the compound.

...and this is our ever-present, thoughtful and loyal chauffeur, who stuck with us for three days and took pains to open the door for the ladies whenever we got into the car:

 

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Doggy Buggy

Another one for the dog series...

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Fish for Your Feet

And speaking of weirdness, we went to a restaurant that was famous for this - a place where you can eat and have your feet picked clean at the same time by live fish.  What'll they think of next?  Well, this is Asia, so it'll be something...

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, More Building Weirdness

Some more shots of the wierdness of the outside of this building...

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Colored Threads

This is the only other one that I felt compelled to stop and capture...something about threads an indigenous population used for textiles, fabrics, etc.  Played with some of the Photoshop effects as seen below.  As always, best seen on the bigger screen of a laptop or desktop computer:

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Tree Bark Dress

This was a great museum, but didn't take many photos of what was inside due to dark conditions, etc.  Couldn't resist this one, though, of a dress made of tree bark.  Yes, let's wear this to the prom...

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Museum Diorama

...and inside we have a diorama of what the whole building looks like.  Am supposing that this was built and submitted by the architects as part of the pre-construction phase.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Background Shots

Got a couple of good background photos, as well as a bookmark or two, via the pictures above and below.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Entrance to Weird Museum Building

Our guide was very helpful in providing suggestions on things we could do while in the area, and visiting this museum was a good one.  I like weird buildings, so went crazy taking pictures of this guy.  Standing are my soon-to-be son-in-law DeQuan, daughter Allison and lovely wife Chenjean.

Entrance to same below:

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Artful Street Lights / The Campaign Speech

This is a fairly cropped-in shot captured with the Bigger Cahoona from the window of a moving car.  Fortunate, because usually in this situation - that of seeing something worthy of a snapshot on the road - the scene has passed me by without getting a chance to even lift the camera into position.

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Yesterday I posted a bit about the political activity that we grew up with in Orange during presidential campaigns.  Something much more recent happened, however, that had us involved a little more than we bargained for.

This was just five or six years ago, when the husband of a friend of ours ran for a judge position on the Democrat ticket here in Harris County.  We were recruited to distribute yard signs, and attended one or two fund-raising functions.  Then, when it came time to campaign to the Asian population, guess who ended up front and center?

They decided to give a speech at the Chinese Community Culture Center, and we showed up at the appointed time to help out.  They were getting their equipment in place as people filtered in, and soon enough the room had several hundred Asian-Americans in their chairs waiting for things to happen.  Well, nothing could happen until the candidate was properly introduced, and they didn't have anyone slated to do that just yet.  Someone saw me there and, having a reputation as an accomplished public speaker in my role as Criminal Justice Planner for the region, decided that I'd be the one for the job.  I had about two minutes to get information and gather my thoughts, then was thrust on the stage behind a microphone with attendees ready to listen, all eyes on me.  I'm like, What am I doing here - I'm a Republican!

But we do things for our friends, and using the information just gleaned plus what we knew already based on our friendship I managed to do the introduction without attracting too much attention to myself.  As an aside to this, the agency I worked for really frowned on public political activity among its employees due to the supposedly apolitical nature of our jobs.  With that in mind, I was very glad that the press didn't show up for this one (that I know of).

Thus it was that my inauguration into the political maelstrom was mercifully short, as the candidate lost the election and chose not to run again.  I sort of felt for him because he was considered a shoe-in for the position and must have been disappointed, but think we both knew that things happen for a reason, and just the way they're supposed to.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Dog Dressed in Yilan / Bedroom Billboard

Another series I'd like to put together is how they do their dogs in Taiwan, this being a prime example depicting the kind of relationship that an owner has with his or her pup.

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Here in America the campaign season is in full swing.  A week or so ago we watched the debate between the vice presidential candidates (Vance and Walz), and were impressed with how they both handled themselves.  I normally stay away from political debates, but we were glad we watched this one.

Whenever these times roll around it brings to memory what a politically active family I grew up with.  Nobody ran for office of any kind or went out knocking on doors, but Dad took the time to teach us what was going on, and we were avid learners.  Some of my earliest memories are of visiting a campaign headquarters there in Orange and bringing home lots of buttons, bumper stickers and other souvenirs.  One time they gave out little megaphones, and I marched up and down our driveway exhorting our neighbors to vote for Barry Goldwater until I grew hoarse.  This was 1964, when I was six years old.

Four years later, when I was ten, somehow my brother Allan obtained a billboard.  Yes, a real billboard of a gubernatorial candidate running for office that year.  It was made of paper, and consisted of folded-up panels that were designed to be put together on-site.  Thing was, the site for this one was our middle bedroom at 1512 Chapman.  And billboards are BIG.  By the time my brother(s) unfolded all the panels and put them together, the picture covered an entire wall and then some, spilling over to cover half of the ceiling.  It remained there for several weeks, and I remember being disappointed in the result because when you look at a billboard from a few feet away it's just a bunch of colored dots.

It was that same year, 1968, that I attended a Democrat rally in Houston for Hubert Humphrey.  One of my friends was going with his family, and I was invited to tag along.  It was held at the Astrodome, and I remember that his father, on the way back to the hotel after the rally, marveled that we were so physically close to a man that might be the president one day!  (didn't happen)

So growing up we were politically aware, and witnessed the value of civic involvement.  Not a bad thing to be around in a country that was, and is, arguably the greatest in the world.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Unique Pickup Truck

One of these days I'm going to assemble into a series all the different kinds of small vehicles used as pickup trucks here in Taiwan.  This one in Yilan is not quite like anything I'd ever seen before...

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Lady Washing Dishes

Not sure if this lady would have approved of my taking her picture, or of the world fame that's sure to follow after this is posted in the blog, but I just liked the scene.  Washing dishes in a sink out on the street is fairly typical in the smaller towns and villages, and something I've done many times up on the mountainside where Chenjean grew up.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Library (maybe) in Yilan

Either a library or book store in Yilan, not sure which.  The scenes in the door and window (with the kid) are pictures installed on the inside of the glass...

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Bicycle Store Shelves

This plus the next several posts will be of general streets scenes in Yilan.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Brickman Playing Checkers / My Third Experience in New Orleans

It's pretty easy to tell that this cement brickwork was assembled from three pieces.  Still very well done, and one can picture our soon-to-be son-in-law engaging in a real game with the guy.

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Nick moved back to Houston in high school, so how did I end up in New Orleans again?  After moving down to the Houston area, during the first year of our marriage, it entered my head one day that it would be a good idea to get into our new little Toyota Corolla station wagon and just drive over there to have some fun.  So Chenjean and I packed up, hit I-10 and pointed east one morning, making the drive in about seven hours. The plan was to find a hotel in town to stay for a few nights...sounds easy, right?  Well, what didn't end up in my calculations for the trip was that it was February, RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF MARDI GRAS SEASON!!  Not a hotel anywhere within ten miles of downtown.  Our fun little trip began with great frustration over this, until I had an idea.  Why not go to Gretna, where Nick used to live?  As stated in yesterday's post, Gretna is some distance from downtown, so a room there probably would be easier to find.  We again headed east on I-10.

Then something extraordinary happened.  We'd driven a few miles, going along at 55-60 miles per hour (highway speed limit in those days was 55), when an older black guy pulled up in the lane next to us.  He acted like he wanted to talk, so Chenjean rolled down her passenger window.  He then yelled to us over the wind and traffic that it looked like we were lost, so where did we want to go?  I yelled back that we were going to Gretna.  He yelled back, "OK, follow me!"  So we moved over to his lane to get behind him, and followed for a few miles.  Upon our approach to the exit for Highway 90 he held his left arm high outside his driver's side window, pointing to the right over the top of his car indicating that we needed to exit that way.  I flashed my lights in thanks, and we went our separate ways.  We found a room right away in Gretna.

I shall never forget that stranger and his kindness to someone on the highway he didn't even know, perceiving that we were unfamiliar with the area.  It warms my heart to this day every time I think about it.  It's the little things in life, right?

Chenjean and I did end up going back into town that day.  After checking into the hotel we drove back downtown and watched one of the last parades of the season, returning well after dark.  A little culture lesson for her, being still relatively fresh in this country, and a trip down memory lane for me, as it was in the French Quarter where my friends and I had the run of the place years before.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Fancy Brickwork / My Second Experience in New Orleans

Never saw anything like this, so thought it was very interesting, this "brickwork".  Found out that it's nothing more than molded and painted cement, but a fair piece of artwork nevertheless.

The installation below was a little further down the street.  The building featured as the first pic in this series can be seen to the left at bottom:

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As for my second time in the Big Easy, this happened a little later, when I was barely a teenager.  I had a friend in Orange named Nick Schriber who's father, Charles, worked for Pelto Oil, and he was transferred to New Orleans.  For two summers in a row I spent a week or two at their house in a brand-new neighborhood in Gretna, which at the time was some distance from downtown where his dad worked.  So on some days he would drive the three of us - Nick, his little brother Danny, and me - into town, dropping us off in the French Quarter so we could spend the day there until he headed home after work.  It seems amazing today to think that kids were allowed that kind of freedom, but that's how it was then and no one, parent or child, had any second thoughts.  Thus, we were left to roam and take advantage of any adventures that were to be had.  Nick already knew the area pretty well, so he and his brother would show me around the places they were familiar with, then we created some new adventures and mischief of our own.  I was an avid matchbook collector at the time, so went into as many establishments as possible - even some strip clubs (if we were lucky) - to get new ones for my collection.

Somehow they knew an older teenager named Danny Von Tempo who worked at a print shop there in the Quarter.  We spent some time there just hanging around, and that is where I became interested in the process of typesetting.  As Danny was showing me how things worked it occurred to me that my dad's birthday was coming up, and I asked him, Would be possible to create a lead plate with his name in 36-point type?  So Danny created one for me, and I was able to give it to Dad when I got back home; it said "Robert F. Mahood" and the letters were reversed since it was made for typesetting.  This is an item that I still have, as I took possession of it at Dad's passing in 2007.

One day Nick's dad took us up into the building where he worked downtown.  He was pretty high up in the company, so had this magnificent, spacious penthouse office on about the 25th floor overlooking downtown New Orleans.  I shall never forget his description of a shooting that took place from one of the other buildings, where a Vietnam vet took potshots at passersby below, killing a total of nine and wounding twelve others.  Mr. Schriber was there at the window pointing out for us where this and that happened.  The emotions were still strong in his voice as he described seeing the entire event unfold before his eyes.  The perpetrator was black, and targeted whites, blaming his actions on racism that he'd experienced in the military.  The story of Mark Essex and what he did can be found in a Wikipedia article written about the incident:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Essex

One of those summers I didn't have a ride back to Orange when the visit was over, so Nick's dad drove me over to the Greyhound station so that I could take a bus home by myself.  This is something else that would be unimaginable today, but again, this is another time and no one thought a thing of it.  In fact I had a great time on the ride and made a new friend about my age along the way.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Rustic Signage / My First Experience in New Orleans

This being the old part of the town, and tourist-oriented, a lot of the signs and shops had a rustic look.  The first picture in the second column features the same building that was posted a few days ago in this series.

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As related in a recent post, I've been spending more of my retirement time re-reading some of the books in our library, the latest of which is a biography of Charles Schulz.  I really like anything that details the creative process.  In relating the history of the Peanuts comic strip and the influences that impacted "Sparky" in his formative years, David Michaelis cited George Herriman's Krazy Kat strip.  This sent me down the rabbit hole of exploring Herriman and his history in Wikipedia, where I learned that he was born and spent his early youth in New Orleans.  Upon reading this I found myself awash in nostalgia.

Why am I nostalgic about the city of New Orleans?  As it turns out, I do have a little bit of history there:

My first experience was when my brother Bob was in college.  As an undergraduate he attended Tulane University, ultimately earning a degree in electrical engineering (as did our father, and our grandfather, and our son as well to make the fourth generation EE in the family).  During his freshman year the whole family would pile into our station wagon, driving over from Orange to visit Bob and enjoy the sights and sounds of the Big Easy.  As an 11-year-old I thought it was great fun to be on a big college campus, and sought opportunities to explore the place by myself, which I actually got to do once or twice.  I remember his dorm building and room (he lived on the 2nd or 3rd floor), and the huge stereo system they had that very, very loudly played Lucky Man by Emerson, Lake and Palmer.  Bob grew familiar with the good restaurants along the shore of Lake Pontchartrain and I ate turtle soup there for the first time.  It was all such an adventure.

Mom and Dad went there sometimes on their own, and as a family we visited several more times during Bob's time there at Tulane.  Occasionally he would come home to Orange for a visit.  Bob liked fast cars, so showed up once in his orange AMX 390, which was a beaut.  I've always been uncomfortable in fast cars, though, so didn't enjoy riding in it.

One time during a visit with Bob the family stayed in a huge, four-story mansion on St Charles Street, riding the street car to get here and there.  We had to dress up on our last night there, so don't know if it was for graduation or another occasion.

So that sums up the first chapter of my time in New Orleans.  Two more to go...to be posted tomorrow and the next day.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Daisies

Suppose, for the sake of balance, that it's good I'm attracted to these types of scenes as well.  This was a quick one, snapped as the group was on the go...

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Impoverished Entryway

Not sure why, but I've always been drawn to these types of scenes.  In Mexico, also, what attracted me most were the places of poverty, where families lived hand-to-mouth:  a tumbledown neighborhood in a city, or an impoverished ejido out in the middle of nowhere.  After all, I lived in such an ejido for a while in 1980, and on the outskirts of Mexico City visited a family in a cinder block neighborhood that sprang up in nine days.  This was along the edge of a huge landfill, and ten or so families shared the use of a welding outfit to scrape out a living.  Can't say they were that happy, but managed to make it day by day.  And no matter where we were visiting down there, we never left without having eaten something.

Closeup of the bicycle below:

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Tricycle Bumper System

Now THIS I thought was pretty cool.  Somebody's dad evidently assembled a bumper system for his kid's tricycle.  Must've been a bear to just hop on and ride, plus the extra weight.  Perhaps that's why this thing was mounted against a wall (this pic was rotated 90 degrees)...or maybe the kid just grew up.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Tree System

Another interesting tree - or tree system?  Slightly different perspective below:

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Vine-Enshrouded Tree

Also on this street there was a tree completely overtaken by vines.  There were a bunch of guys smoking to the immediate left of it, so had to rotate the photo to crop them out...

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Arched Walkway

At one point during our 5-week stay in Taiwan we were joined by our daughter and soon-to-be son-in-law, who flew over from the States for a 10-day stay of their own.  Eager to show them the sights and make their trip enjoyable, Chenjean contacted a tour service to plan a trip over to the northeast coast of the island.  The service was great, with the guide staying with us for the entire 3-day trip.

The posts from this place will be a hodgepodge - in fact I'm not sure at all about the names of the towns we visited, but there was a plan.

The first place on the agenda was known for having a famous street in an old quarter of the town.  We took a slow walk down this street, wandering off to see anything that caught our eye on the way.  There was a lot of distracting background clutter surrounding the building above, which, as you can see, was removed.